


A twist in fate, Darkness rising

by Fanfictional123



Series: A twist in fate [3]
Category: Descendants (Disney Movies)
Genre: F/M, Mal is a badass, Misunderstandings, Role Reversal, So is Uma, but don't worry it'll be okay in the end, hades is a good dad, there is much sadness in this one
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-07-26
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:54:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 14,083
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25229419
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fanfictional123/pseuds/Fanfictional123
Summary: Six months after Leah's attempt to seize control life has returned to normal-almost.It's time for the next set of Isle Kids to come to Auradon, but not everyone is happy with who she's chosen and a forgotten enemy is looking to cause trouble for Mal and Ben-and for the whole of Auradon. Will Mal be able to face the threat to come? And who will help her when she's cut off from everyone she usually trusts?
Relationships: Adam/Belle (Disney), Ben/Mal (Disney: Descendants), Doug/Evie (Disney: Descendants), Jane/Carlos de Vil
Series: A twist in fate [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1801219
Comments: 7
Kudos: 28





	1. Arguments

Mal was not happy.

Considering the fact that she was currently waist deep in water that was a pretty normal feeling in any case, but she was even less happy than she might otherwise be waist deep in water because of a certain boyfriend who she was studiously ignoring.

She had agreed when he'd carefully suggested she learn to swim-apparently he had secretly been learning with Jay and Carlos so that he could teach her because of her complete and utter terror of drowning.

Sure she didn't like it and she didn't overly want to but she knew he'd find it comforting so she'd said yes like any loving girlfriend would. She loved Ben, of course she was going to agree to learn to swim if he felt safer knowing she could-and he didn't even know what had happened almost five months ago when she'd been temporarily a captive of Uma and her crew.

All of this she might have been able to handle and put up with, she'd been in a good mood lately with her seventeenth birthday coming up in a few days time-she'd planned it well of course. They'd be traveling to the Isle on the day to announce the newest selection of VK's to come to Auradon-the Council had made it impossible to bring them over until the new school year had started but she'd managed to wrangle it so that they could come a couple of weeks before school started, they'd be hosted at Auradon Prep early so that they could get used to the layout of the school and they'd be given a couple of weeks to adjust to the differences between the Isle and Auradon.

There would be a party four days after they arrived, both to celebrate her birthday and to welcome the VK's to Auradon. Of course they'd be the guests of honor-as well as the original VK's and of course Dizzy and Hadie, who were her wards and had settled into life in Auradon really well.

She was honestly insanely proud of both of the kids, Dizzy spent half her time helping Evie with her growing business and Hadie spent a lot of time messing around with Jay, Carlos and Ben. They were all a big, slightly crazy family these days and it was nice-when there wasn't something to  
disrupt the balance that was.

And sadly enough the balance had been very very disrupted at the moment. She'd hoped they could have a nice peaceful lesson so that she could relax while she tried to face her fears, she should have known that her dad-who had been very disapproving over the issue that was causing all of this over the phone, would tell Ben to try and talk to her out of it.

So she was very much ignoring him. Even as he stood close behind her and wrapped his arms around her, "You can still change your mind you haven't announced the names."

"I could." Mal agreed, completely calm, "Not going to but you're right, I could do that." she didn't turn her head to look at her boyfriend, squirming out of his grip instead and moving away from him.

"Mal please be reasonable-"

"I am being reasonable, you voiced your concerns, I considered them and I decided that the concerns weren't a big enough reason to change my mind."

"C'mon Mal." Ben's voice was wheedling, "Celia and Freddie Facilier, fine-I get it Celia helped you get the Ember and you want to give her sister a chance too, that's fair enough, and the Smee twins too I totally get it I agree with those picks, and the fact that you picked Claudine because she's part of Hadie and Dizzy's Anti-Heroes club, that's all fine Mal I'm on board with that.. but-"

"I have heard your arguments before Ben." Mal shot him an annoyed look, "And I have refuted them with arguments of my own-"

"You let Uma's words get to you." Ben shook his head, "This is just your way of proving a point because she said you picked and chose unfairly-"

"No it's not!" Mal glared, "I mean yeah she did say that I wouldn't choose any of Gaston's kids because of my parents but that's not why I've included Gil on my list."

"Then why, because I don't get it! He helped kidnap you Mal-"

"Because no one evil would have shown me any kindness and he did-"

"Oh yeah." Ben's voice was tight "Yet you still won't talk about what actually happened. You say Gil was kind but you won't say anything else-"

"I don't like talking about it." Mal's voice was slightly sharp, "It's in the past now and I'm not changing my mind I am giving Gil the chance to come to Auradon. It's not like I've invited Uma or Harry-"

"Nope, just their muscle-"

"He deserves a chance!" Mal moved away from Ben when he reached out to grab her arm, pushing herself through the water back towards the Pavilion.

"Anyone else Mal!" Ben threw his hands up in frustration, "Literally anyone other than him and I'd be fine with it but he's one of her crew. No way will Uma not cook up some scheme-"

"Yes because she'll have time." Mal drawled sarcastically, "The announcement will be made on the day and they'll have like five hours to decide before they come to meet the limo. Your mom had a few days knowing what was going to happen even if they only told you guys on the day."

"You can't trust-"

"Ben he'll be alone! He won't have any of his real close friends with him to help and he'll be surrounded by people who aren't going to help him! You and the other's will be in school with him, I won't even be at school 'cause I graduated early. He won't be a threat. Honestly you're almost as bad as my dad!"

"He doesn't like it either-"

"I am aware I have heard his numerous rants." honestly at this stage Mal was actually glad that her parents were on their cruise and they wouldn't be around when the new wave of Isle kids came because while her mom was nervous but willing to give Gaston's son a chance her dad was very very opposed to it.

Honestly it was frustrating as hell and she was probably lucky that he didn't know about the fact that she'd been held captive by Uma's crew during her trip to the Isle, if he found out about that... that Gil had been one of the two to actually grab her, well it wouldn't be pretty she knew that much.

"He has a good point Mal." Ben's voice was pleading, "It's bad enough that you're insisting on going to the Isle in person with us to collect the new VK's but putting Gil on the list? How do you think Uma and Harry will react they're both desperate for the chance of revenge after what happened last time you were there."

"Ben I am not some helpless little kid." Mal glared at him, "I love you, I really do but you are not going to dictate what I do or don't do. There will be guards with us, Uma and Harry won't get anywhere near me."

For one thing she knew Hades would be there keeping a close eye on her. Making sure she was okay... but Ben didn't know that did he. She bit her lip at that thought, glancing towards the pavilion where her necklace was on top of her clothes and her towel.

It wasn't so much that she was actively trying to keep it a secret, just that every time she might be comfortable with talking about her discovery about her heritage something came up.

He followed her gaze and frowned, "That's another thing, I still don't trust Hades you never told me what the deal you made with him was-what if he  
comes after you for coming back to the Isle-" that was ironic, it really was.

"Ben he's not a threat believe me-"

"Every time he gets brought up you act weird!" Ben shook his head, "I don't like any of this you're just brushing off all of my concerns.

"We are so not discussing the Hades situation when we're arguing!" Mal shook her head, "Nope, nope not happening-"

"Hadie knows what your deal was." Ben's voice was annoyed, "I know he does because he always gives you a weird look whenever someone mentions it, I don't like it, especially with the fact that he seems to have taken over the Isle-"

"He hasn't done anything wrong!" Mal shook her head, "Ben he's been keeping the adult Villains in line and making sure that the younger kids get the food and other supplies we've been sending over. He's keeping the Isle semi-peaceful-"

"He's Hades! The only Villain worse than him was Maleficent!"

"Maybe he's turning over a new leaf." Mal couldn't help that warm feeling she felt whenever the reports mentioned that Hades was actually trying to keep the Isle from descending into chaos. She knew why he was doing it, it wasn't out of the goodness of his heart but for her, and for Hadie-who had come with her to visit their father on occasion.

"Come on Mal." Ben shook his head, "How likely is that really he's a villain..."

"Ben we're not doing this now." Mal shook her head, resisting the urge to look up and scream very loudly. She honestly did love Hades, he wasn't a perfect parent but he was certainly making a good attempt.

"Why not! You keep hiding things from me Mal, ever since you went to the Isle... you didn't even tell me you were going-"

"You were camping I couldn't call you even if I wanted to!" Mal shook her head, "It's not-It's not that I'm keeping secrets the situation with Hades is complicated." she shook her head, "It's not something we can just have a five minute chat about and every time I try and sit down with you and talk something happens!"

"Well no one's interrupting us now-"

"This was supposed to be a private happy little swimming lesson date not an interrogation." Mal snapped, "I have a right to decide when I want to talk about certain things!" the fact that her dad was Hades was big, she was adjusting well all things considered but it didn't make it easy to process or discus, especially knowing how most of Auradon would react.

"You won't discuss anything-like the fact that you're letting Gil of all people come to Auradon! You're not willing to discuss that are you?"

"I considered what you said and I made the choice!" Mal hauled herself up out of the water, grabbing at her towel, "He wasn't bad enough that I'd say he doesn't deserve a second chance-"

"That's because you're too forgiving." Ben shot back and Mal glared.

"Really, really. That coming from literally the one person who should never ever say that I'm too forgiving. In case you've forgotten Gil isn't the one who love spelled a cookie!" as soon as the words slipped out Mal regretted them, they were true of course, and the fact that they demonstrated her point perfectly was the reason they'd slipped out.

But she knew it was too far. She'd forgiven Ben for it a long time ago, and the stricken look on his face made Mal feel sick.

"Really?" his voice was quiet. "Really?"

"Ben I..." Mal swallowed hard, "I didn't-I didn't mean it like that you know I didn't please wait just-"

"No, no you meant it like that." Ben was moving to the Pavilion too, hauling himself up and grabbing his towel, "I think I'll walk back."


	2. Little brother, big sister

Mal lifted her head and glowered when a pillow hit her head, her eyes narrowing when she took in a familiar flash of blue hair. "Go away."

"Nope." Hadie's voice was cheerful, too cheerful in Mal's opinion. She hadn't seen her little brother for a week-he'd been in lessons or occasionally hanging out with Flynn, Rapunzel and Eugene's youngest who he'd formed a firm friendship with-or Maya. That friendship had been a surprise, but Herkie often brought his younger sister to hang out with Hadie.

Thankfully it seemed that Hercules didn't have any ill will towards the son of Hades-hell he'd invited Hadie to family dinners before since technically Hercules was her and Hadie's cousin.

As much as she was kind of glad to see her baby brother she didn't appreciate him showing up and waking her up when she was taking a few precious minutes to mope.

She hadn't spoken to Ben since their argument at the date-she was pretty sure this was the longest they'd gone without speaking and it felt wrong.

She loved him, she loved Ben and now he was refusing to so much as look at her. He'd gone to stay at Evie's new place purely to avoid her, since before that point he'd been living in Castle Beast.

"Go away before I set you on fire." it was an empty threat-turned out Hades kids were fire resistant-Hadie more than Mal, likely an effect of her Fae blood there.

"Uh huh. Audrey said that if you don't get up for me she'll come up here with a bucket of water and make you get up."

"Audrey's here?"

"Yeah, it's your birthday, the big day of course she's here. She wanted to help you pick out an outfit. And the others should be here in a few hours."

"We're going to the Isle." Mal groaned, "It's not like it's an Auradon ball or something I don't need to dress up fancy." she lifted her head, "Did the list of people who are being given the chance get sent-"

"Yeah." Hadie grinned at her, "Your dad called earlier to complain by the way-"

"Of course he did." Mal sat up, rolling her eyes, "I assume you and Dizzy will stay here while we go and pick up the Isle Kids?"

"Yeah." Hadie rolled his eyes, "Though I don't see why-"

"Because there is a small risk-as much as I'd never say that to dad or Ben there is a small risk of someone attacking and you and Dizzy are kids and  
I want you both safe am I clear,"

"Speaking of Ben..." Hadie really wasn't subtle with the concerned look he gave her and Mal felt her stomach twisting uncomfortably as she swung her legs out of her bed and shoved away her blankets.

"I don't know if he's coming." her voice was slightly tight, "Before you even ask I don't know. I haven't spoken to him in days." Her one attempt to call him had ended in him telling her he didn't want to even hear her voice yet because he was upset.

She missed him, she really did. She did regret what she'd said-even if she hadn't been entirely wrong. She loved him, with all her heart she loved him. The idea of him being so upset at her that even her voice upset him... it bothered her a lot. She'd forgiven him for the cookie, she had. She should have never brought it up but-well. It was a part of their past, a part of their history. She shouldn't feel like she had to avoid certain topics should she? She groaned to herself, running her fingers through her curls.

"The others are definitely coming with you right?" there was genuine concern in Hadie's voice.

"Yeah, Evie called last night to confirm." at least they weren't angry with her. She knew they were doing their best to stay neutral, though Evie had gently admitted that she'd been half expecting something like this.

Mal and Ben hadn't argued before-not since their disastrous first date, not since they officially became a couple at her Coronation-that was when they considered it to be official in any case, the day that Ben had truly made his choice and chosen her. Evie had pointed out that they were bound to have a big fight at some point and it didn't surprise her that it had involved that rather uncomfortable piece of the young couples history.

"That's something then." Hadie gave Mal a reassuring smile, "And you and Ben will sort things out soon-"

"I know." Mal sighed, "It's just all complicated and..."

"And he still doesn't know about dad-"

"It's not that simple." Mal gave Hadie an almost lost look, "It's not something that just comes up in casual conversation and I'm always so busy. I swear every time we have enough time to really talk I get called away for some diplomatic issue or another-last time it was that whole issue in Arrendelle with Elsa's lack of control when she wasn't well."

"I remember that didn't she accidentally freeze the Duke of Weselton's arm?"

"I'm still not convinced that was an accident." Mal snorted, "Not that he didn't totally have it coming."

"I swear you spent days sorting that mess-"

"Three days stopping him from trying to declare war-they were finally repairing relations and then she goes and gets sick and freezes his arm."

"He's an asshole anyway-"

"Hadie! Watch your mouth." Mal reached out, batting her little brothers arm and giving him a chiding look.

"Why there's no one else around." Hadie grinned before pausing, "I get that it's not an easy conversation but you do need to have it-"

"I do, I know but it needs to be a real talk and... I want to have some time just to spend time with my boyfriend without dropping bombshells like the fact that my birth father is Hades on him. And I wasn't wrong giving Gil a chance is the right thing to do-"

"Because everyone gives someone who helped to kidnap them a second chance-"

"My boyfriend literally cast a love spell on me." Mal groaned, "And I know that's in the past I forgave him for gods sake I didn't-I don't hold it against him now I didn't mean it the way he thought I meant it... I just meant that he got a second chance, other people deserve second chances too."

"I-wait Ben did what?" Hadie blinked, "He did what now?"

"He made a cookie imbued with a love spell and gave it to me-"

"That-holy crap Mal-"

"He regretted it." Mal gave Hadie a look, "I know it sounds crazy but I forgave him. He was scared of Maleficent and she'd demanded the wand, he knew the only way to get close enough was as my date and I'd already told him I wasn't dating until after the Coronation."

"So he.. okay okay that... when did you find out?"

"Our first date, Enchanted lake, I ended up in the water. I was really angry and he told me everything."

"Why the hell was he still your date?" Hadie looked stunned and confused.

"I had to give him the chance-"

"Oh my god." Hadie blinked, "I.. okay maybe he is being a little bit of a hypocrite."

"He is! Ben got the chance to prove himself, people like Gil deserve it too-"

"I dunno, I'd just say screw both of 'em." Hadie told Mal bluntly, "You are way too forgiving y'know that Mal. Why Gil specifically though?"

"He... he's not as bad as Harry and Uma."

"What did he do?"

"I... they tipped a bucket of cold water on me-"

"Explains why you looked like a drowned rat when you got back." Hadie piped up, earning a glare from Mal.

"Shut it brat. Anyway, Gil got me a blanket and draped it over me when he was on duty making sure I didn't somehow untie myself and escape."

"Hm, so not totally evil." Hadie conceded, "Not good but not totally evil, given your history of forgiving people I guess I get it."

"I'm glad someone does." Mal smiled when her brother sat next to her, draping her arm over his shoulder, "Y'know you might be annoying but I'm glad you decided to stay here."

"Eh Dizzy wanted to stick with Evie, I get it but I wanted to get to know my badass Queen big sister, besides, I think Castle Beast is way cooler than Auradon Prep or that little place Evie brought where she and Dizzy stay."

"I agree." Mal grinned softly, "So, you said Audrey is here?"

"Yep. She's waiting downstairs for you."

"Good." Mal smiled slightly wider, "I haven't seen her for like a week-" she paused, "Oh god she's gonna be able to tell that something is wrong right away."

"Yeah, probably best if Ben stays away if Audrey finds out you two are fighting." Hadie hadn't known Audrey long, but during that time he'd seen the beautiful perfect example of a Princess physically attack Steven the one time he'd gotten up the nerve to try and speak to Mal after the family day debacle so long ago.

He'd made a comment under his breath about how Leah should have finished the job when Mal was five because it would have saved a lot of trouble.  
Mal could remember her friends all grabbing at Ben to stop him from attacking the dark haired prince, meanwhile Mal had literally sprinted to Audrey and tried to tackle the other girl to the ground only for Audrey to somehow dodge Mal's lunge and throw herself at Steven.

Mal could still remember the looks of shock on her friends faces when they'd realised that the real danger was Audrey.

The most amusing thing had been the way that when Audrey was dragged off of the screaming teen she had brushed off her dress, checked her make-up and hair in a pocket sized mirror and as she'd walked past Hadie she'd accepted his high five.

Honestly ever since that day Mal was pretty sure that other than herself Audrey was Mal's favorite person in Auradon.

In any case she let out a loud sigh and removed her arm from around her little brothers shoulder, "Well, I suppose it's time I should go downstairs then. It's a big day today."

"The biggest." Hadie paused, "I have a present for you by the way, I'm gonna give it to you later if that's okay-"

"It's fine." Mal smiled, ruffling the shock of blue hair, "Now let's go downstairs hey kiddo?"

"I'm not a kid-"

"Yeah you are." Mal grinned, "You're practically a baby-" she smirked, reaching under his chin and tickling the way she would with a cute baby,

"Coochie Coochi Coo-" she ducked the pillow he tried to use to hit her and she laughed when his hair started to flame, scrambling off out of the room with him chasing after her, their laughter filling the halls.


	3. Friendship heals

Audrey, looking as prim and polished as ever, her pastel pink summer dress neat and tidy, her long brown waves pulled out of her eyes with a headband and her make up perfect raised an eyebrow when Mal, wearing a disheveled nightgown with her hair a tangled mess came sprinting into the room. "Do I want to know."

"I annoyed Hadie." Mal's voice was unrepentant, "And now I think he may try to murder me-"

"MAL!"

"Yep, he may try to murder me. That's treason right he'd be committing treason."

"Probably justifiable treason." Audrey looked very amused, "Happy Birthday Mal." she tossed a package wrapped in purple at her. "I had it hand made."

"Hm." Mal caught the package, it wasn't too heavy... she frowned as she turned it over in her hands, "A book?"

"Open it."

"Okay." Mal shrugged, tearing the paper away and gasping softly. It was a book, the binding felt like leather but it was an iridescent purple/blue color.

On the front was a raised flame with a metal rose pressed into it.

"For you to write down your spells." Audrey told her without prompting, "Gotta write them down somewhere right?"

"It's beautiful." Mal whispered as she opened the book up and ran her fingers over the smooth blank pages, "Audrey I love it-"

"Of course you do." Audrey smirked, "It's a present from me. I'm your best friend if I couldn't figure out what to get you I'd be sincerely worried about the future of our-" she was cut off by Mal hugging her tightly.

"I love you." she'd needed something to perk her up. She should have known it would be Audrey who would make her feel better.

Of course the moment was broken by Hadie sprinting into the room and tackling Mal, sending all three of them crashing onto the couch.

Mal shrieked and Audrey burst out laughing as Hadie moved so that he was sat on top of Mal, "And the victory goes to Hadie and the crowd goes wild!"

"I knew I shouldn't have let Maya introduce you to wrestling!" Mal shoved the boy to the floor, "God you're such a pain in the butt-"

"Yeah you can definitely see the resemblance." Audrey's tone was nice and light but there was a gleam in her eyes that screamed amusement. "Don't worry Hadie I'm on your side."

"Why thank you." Hadie grinned as he got to his feet. "I always thought it was a little brothers job to annoy their sister-"

"Yeah and if you keep annoying me I'll stick your head down the toilet and flush it-"

"Gross!" Hadie leapt away from Mal, "This is sibling abuse! Audrey-"

"Eh, you're siblings it's allowed." the girl winked at Mal, "Isn't that right."

"Oh yeah." Mal nodded, "Totally right. Like you said Hadie, if it's a little brothers job to annoy their sister then it's a big sisters job to make sure their little brother remembers his place."

Hadie very maturely poked his tongue out at Mal for that, and she simply smirked in return and poked her tongue out back.

"Children children!" Audrey was laughing, "Behave now. Hadie, you go do something to keep yourself entertained, I have a Queen to prepare for a trip to the Isle, it's VK day and Mal has to get the perfect balance between Auradon Style and Isle style to make the best impression possible on everyone-"

"So I can't just say screw it and wear my papa's jacket-"

"No you cannot!" Audrey's voice was almost shrill, "Hadie, we banish you for the next two hours-"

"Two hours-"

"It'll take two hours to make you presentable-"

"You-"

"And that's my cue to get the hell out." Hadie spoke up with a laugh, almost sprinting out of the room, laughing as he ran, Audrey catching Mal's arm to stop her bid for freedom.

"Oh no. You can go torment your baby brother after I've made you look stunning." Audrey flipped her hair with a grin, tugging the other girl back into the room and shoving her down onto the couch, "I brought some clothes and some make up and stuff," her grin was manic, "This is gonna be fun-"

"Audrey have mercy please!" Mal made a break for it, laughing loudly when her best friend launched herself at her, tackling her around her waist, and she hit the floor with a loud groan.

"Gotcha!"

"Why are we friends?" Despite Mal's words she was smiling warmly as she poked her tongue out at her best friend.

"Loser." Audrey pulled away, "There's my bestie. Hadie said you've been kinda downcast lately."

"I have been." Mal admitted "Not that he should have told you that."

"I'd have been able to tell anyway." Audrey shifted, tilting her head as she watched Mal, "So what's up. Why've you been upset lately?"

"I had an argument with Ben-"

"Ouch." Audrey hissed sharply "That's your first argument right?"

"Yeah. Not counting the cookie thing. It's the first argument during what I consider to be our relationship."

"What was it about."

"Gil." Mal sighed, "You remember I mentioned him, Gaston's son, one of the pirates that briefly kidnapped me-"

"Ah yes." Audrey nodded, "I remember hearing your dad yelling down the phone at you a couple of weeks ago over it, you had the phone on speaker because you were doing something else, I just walked away and waited downstairs after that. So Ben doesn't approve?"

"He think's I'm insane, that Gil is dangerous because of who his friends are... that I'm doing it just to prove Uma wrong."

"Are you?" Audrey raised an eyebrow, "You can be petty like that."

"I..." Mal shifted slightly, "I admit it'll be nice knowing that I've proved I'm not the way she seemed to think that I am... that I wouldn't rule Gil out because he's Gaston's son.. but it's also because he has a nicer side I think and... if I can give some people a chance why can't I give others? And.. I brought up the fact that what he did wasn't as bad as... as the cookie thing-"

"And for the record I would have killed him if you told me at the time-"

"Which is why I didn't tell you." Mal sat up, running her fingers through her hair.

"I still think he deserves a little punch even now-"

"I forgave him... and he got upset at me for bringing it up-"

"I mean." Audrey shrugged, "You do have a legitimate point what he did was majorly screwed up and you gave him a chance to prove himself. You weren't wrong."

"He was really hurt." Mal ducked her head, "I never meant to hurt him like that. I just... I was trying to make a point I didn't mean it in a 'I haven't forgiven him' kind of way which is how he took it."

"Then he's being a sensitive dumbass." Audrey stated firmly, "Mal if what you have is worth it then you two will figure things out, look what you guys have already been through together. He loves you and you love him... though I hope you realize that I am going to stab him in the foot with my heels for upsetting you." that earned a damp laugh and a sniffle from Mal, who wiped away the sudden tears quickly.  
"I'll allow it just this once-"

"Good 'cause I wasn't asking for permission." Audrey grinned before pausing, "Was that all there was to the fight or do I need to know more that I need to tell him off for."

"No, nothing else to yell at him for. The... he's upset that.. he knows there's something I haven't told him about the Hades situation but to be fair to him he's right there is..."

"You still haven't told him?" the raised eyebrow Audrey gave her was extremely judgemental and Mal flushed.

"Not for lack of trying. It's not something you bring up in casual conversation Audrey-"

"Sure it is." Audrey grinned teasingly, "Hey Ben, just so you know I recently found out that along with my parents being Belle and Adam the previous rulers of Auradon and my birth mother being the Mistress of Evil my father is actually a God and is the God of the Underworld so you really shouldn't make me cry-"

"Audrey!" Mal laughed at that, shoving her friends shoulder, "Oh my freaking god you can't say stuff like that!"

"It's true and you know it!"

"You're evil." Mal was smiling as Audrey got to her feet and held out a hand for Mal to pick herself up, which she did with a soft grateful smile.

"That's what I like to see, it's your birthday Mal, you need to be happy, you've been working for this for ages."

"I have." Mal nodded, "I just wish Ben was gonna be my side to see it-"

"Well it's his loss." Audrey's voice was firm, "You want me to come to the Isle with you and the other VK's instead-they are coming right please tell me that they haven't picked sides."

"Jay, Carlos and Evie are all coming."

"Good, that's good. So, you want me to come?"

"Honestly as much as it would be crazy watching you on the Isle.. no. Believe me Audrey it's not your type of place-"

"I'm your best friend if you need me I'm there."

"I know.. god I know and I appreciate it more than I can ever say." Mal squeezed Audrey's hand, "But I'll be okay with just the gang for today.

Besides I'm pretty sure my papa will be in the background watching and making sure that everyone's on their best behavior, from what I've heard he's really whipped the Isle into shape."

"Good." Audrey smiled, "In that case I won't insist that you let me tag along. Now." Audrey moved over to her bags and grinned, "It's dress up time!"


	4. Isle time

By the time the Isle Kids arrived Audrey had finished using Mal as a living dress up doll, she'd settled on a pair of leather purple pants, a pale blue tight fitting tee that was hidden beneath a lavender leather jacket that came down to mid thigh, and a pair of knee high dark blue boots. The lavender was pastel, not an Isle color, but the rest of it was, a blend of Auradon and the Isle, it was a decent outfit for their purposes, with her hair piled up on top of her head and the front of the bun pinned in place by a golden hairpiece with amethyst roses in it the look really was perfect.

It seemed that Evie agreed, because when their friends arrived-Hadie let them in. When they walked into the room Evie let out a squeal, "Oh my god you look perfect Mal! Audrey you're a genius-"

"Well of course." Audrey flipped her hair and smirked, "Always have been always will be."

"Think I look okay for-"

"I think you look Perfect." Evie declared, giving Mal a hug, "The perfect mix of Auradon and the Isle." she pulled back, "Don't you think boys?"

"Uh, sure?" Carlos' voice was hesitant, "It's an outfit-"

"Evie we're not fashion experts like you." Jay rolled his eyes. "I mean, the best I can say is that she wouldn't look insanely out of place in the Isle or Auradon in what she's wearing."

"That's what I like to hear." Mal let out a laugh as she squirmed out of Evie's grip, "You guys looking forward to today."

"It's a big day." Jay nodded, "Of course we are."

I can hardly believe it's finally come." Evie's voice was bright and happy, "I can hardly believe you actually convinced the morons on the Council to allow it-"

"I can't believe you didn't strangle Chi-Fu." Jay snorted, "We only attended to give our perspective and that was one meeting and I wanted to knock out his teeth."

"I came close to ordering Dude to bite his ass." Carlos added, which made Audrey snort.

"Nah, Mal just told Lonnie who told her mom and Mulan uses it as an excuse to make him suffer-"

"As is only right." Jay nodded, "The guy is a serious piece of work."

"Even Jane who's like, the nicest girl ever said she'd like to punch him." Carlos piped up with a slight grin.

"Ooh." Mal grinned, "You like that idea don't you-"

"What can I say the idea of my girlfriend committing an act of violence is very attractive to me-"

"Boys!" Evie and Audrey huffed at the same time before laughing, the latter shaking her head.

"Anyways Mal, I shall leave you in the others capable hands, if I'm not coming with you I should probably go-Aziz asked me out and I'm considering my response-"

"It doesn't take all day to figure out if you wanna say yes or now-"

"Ah sweet sweet innocent Mal, it's not all in what you say it's how you say it too-"

"I do not want to know." Jay shook his head, "Carlos do you want to know?"

"Nope, we just have to accept that we men will never understand womens minds-"

"Excuse me." Mal snorted, "I am one and I don't understand Evie and Audrey half the time-"

"It's okay we love you anyways." Evie grinned, "Even if you're not the most fashionable-"

"I know what looks good I'm just not obsessed like you guys." Mal rolled her eyes fondly "Anyway where's Dizzy?"

"She and Hadie went to his room to play video games or something." Jay piped up, "He seems to be doing pretty well here."

"Yeah." Mal smiled, "He's settled in good, and it seems like Dizzy has too."

"It's good." Carlos smiled, "And now we're bringing more kids across."

"Yep." Mal nodded, "I bet Dizzy is looking forward to seeing Celia again I know Hadie is."

"Yeah, and it'll be nice to have the Smee twins too, though they are younger. And Freddie." Evie smiled and Mal nodded, "I couldn't bring Celia without her sister, as long as they want to come of course."

"And Gil." It was Jay who spoke up then, "Mal... Are you s-"

"Please don't." Mal's expression became tight and she tensed slightly, "Don't Jay. I made my choice, as the Queen it's my choice, my responsibility, do you really think I would have done it without taking things into consideration?"

"No." Jay sighed, "But... you have to admit we have good reason to worry-"

"I have heard it all from Ben I don't need you guys getting into it with me too okay?"

"We won't." Evie glared at Jay, "We trust you Mal if you think it's the right thing to do then we'll go with it. You're the Queen I know you're doing what you think is best for Auradon-"

"My dad and Ben don't agree-"

"They're just worried." Evie grabbed Mal's hand, squeezing, "But how about we don't think about them right now, we have to head to the Isle soon."

"Yeah." Carlos nodded, "We've gotta pick up the kids-"

"I wonder if Uma and Harry will show their faces." Jay frowned, "Gil might not even show you know that-"

"I do." Mal nodded quickly, "Yeah I do know. And... Uma and Harry can't hurt me. I'll have you guys surrounding me and there'll be a few guards with us to make sure okay?"

"Right." Jay nodded, "I'm just making sure. Ben was worried, like, really worried-"

"He was?"

"Of course." Evie's voice went soft. "Mal he's been miserable since your fight. You two are made for each other you'll work things out."

"I hope you're right." Mal swallowed hard, forcing down her emotions as she straightened up, "But anyway that's not important now. We should head out to the limo, Lumiere said he'd make sure it was all ready for as soon as you guys arrived  
so we could leave when we're ready."

"Then let's go." Jay was clearly relieved at the topic switch, and so was Carlos for that matter.

"I'll see you when you get back Mal." Audrey smiled, "You'll bring them straight to the school right? I'll go and meet Fairy  
Godmother and make sure that everything is all prepared for their arrival."

"Thank you." Mal smiled at her best friend, "And thanks for coming today Audrey. Seriously you're the best-"

"Ugh of course I am." Audrey pecked Mal's cheek before flouncing out in a way that made Evie laugh and the boys stare after her shaking their heads.

"You have to admire her confidence." Jay remarked after a moment-"

"As if you're not that cocky." Carlos elbowed Jay playfully, which led to a scuffle that resulted in Cameron being stuck in a head lock with Jay giving him a noogie.

Mal laughed, rolling her eyes and shaking her head. "Boys, boys stop the playtime and let's get outside shall we." at Mal's words Evie stepped forward, linking their arms together with a smile.

"Let's head to the Isle and give a bunch of new kids the chance we had." her voice was bright and chipper as always, and together the four of them made their way out to the waiting limo, slipping inside of it quickly. As well as the driver there were four guards who would stay with them when they were in the Isle.

Once they were in the limo and moving Carlos grinned slightly, grabbing a peanut butter cup, "Hey Carlos, remember-"

"I was so confused." Carlos laughed, grabbing one for himself, "I don't think any of us had ever had chocolate before had we."

"Nope." Evie shook her head, "I remember you two acting like dumbasses, Ben ended up smacking you both over the head for being dumbasses-"

"That didn't stop them." Mal smiled at the memories, "They pretty much fell out of the car doing a tug of war with... something, I dunno what it was but I remember having to stop myself from bursting out laughing-"

"Fairy Godmother was not impressed." Jay grinned, "And Ben yelled at us for like half an hour when we got to our rooms-he also yelled at me for trying to flirt with you-"

"He tried to flirt with me too-"

"And you shut them both down beautifully." Evie grinned. "Honestly I think that was the moment Ben actually got interested in you as a person rather than just as the person who brought us all to Auradon."

"The first time I've ever been turned down so efficiently. You and Audrey do make a formidable team-"

"Well duh we've been best friends since we were little kids. Seriously if I had to say there was one person who knew me best it'd be her, more than my parents or Ben, Audrey is... Audrey."

"Pretty sure even Ben knows that by now." Evie smiled, "You're like sisters."

"Like twins." Mal added, "We always have been always will be, no one and nothing will change that, not ever, so yeah, we make a damn good team."

"I still think it's kinda hilariously ironic." Carlos shook his head, "I mean, the daughter of Aurora is best friends with the biological daughter of Maleficent-"

"Ugh, don't remind me that I'm related to her." Mal pulled a face, her nose scrunching up. "There mere thought of being connected to her disgusts me. I know it's a part of who I am and all but.. no." Hades yes, she was more than fine with that but Maleficent? No not ever.

Ben still saw her as a mother, and Mal was fine with that but she would never ever be comfortable with the fact that that monster had birthed her. She shook her head, running her fingers through her hair, "Anyway, let's get away from that uncomfortable subject. We need to focus on the VK's today."


	5. The new vk's

When they arrived on the Isle there were crowds of excited people, and there was cheering that made Mal smile as she looked out of the window. So many people were excited, and of course they were followed by a few trustworthy reporters who would be broadcasting the pick up of the new VK's to come to Auradon. Mal smiled as they came to a stop and she watched as they set up the cameras, rolling her eyes-she could have done without the press presence but it was a big event so her people waned to see.

Once the cameras were set up one of the guards opened the door of the limo and the four guards climbed out first, and Mal was the next after them, accepting the hand one of the guards offered and stepping out of the limo, a warm smile on her lips as she looked around at her people. Because they were her people, she could hear the others climbing out behind her and she looked around, the crowd were all watching. She didn't wave like she would in Auradon-the Isle wasn't the right place for that, she could feel the cameras on her, and she knew most of Auradon would be watching the broadcast.

"I'm glad to see everyone here today." she spoke up loudly, so that the watching crowd could hear, "It is my pleasure to be here today, knowing that I'll at last be bringing more kids from the Isle to Auradon." she looked around-she could see Celia and a girl who had similar facial features who must be Freddie, stood with the Smee twins, a girl who must be Claudine and-there was Gil too. He looked almost disbelieving-and a little way behind him glowering towards her were Harry and Uma. She shot them an extra smile that made Evie gently poke her side.

And yes, yes in the background was a flash of blue hair that made her smile as she sent a stealthy wink in that direction. Her papa was there to support her. It was a nice feeling, especially since her dad wasn't exactly happy with her at the moment.

"I know how many of you feel about Auradon... I do believe me and I understand. But I hope together we can work for the future, I have plenty of plans to bring as many more Isle kids to Auradon as I possibly can. Everyone deserves a second chance after all." there was some cheering-a few glares but most of the people gathered seemed very supportive of her sentiment, "And believe me my pace will be speeding up! Now, I sent out the list of children who've been chosen to come to Auradon, as I said before, no one has to come if they don't want to. And if you don't like it in Auradon then you're free to return to the Isle whenever you please I want to assure you all of that."

"It's a choice." Evie spoke up, "And there'll be arrangements made for you to visit family if you want."

"Obviously family members can't visit Auradon." Jay added, "But you can visit them. You can speak to one of us." he gestured to himself, Evie, and Carlos, "And we'll arrange something for you."

"Auradon will welcome you, believe us." Carlos grinned, "They welcomed us after all, gave us a chance even after we screwed up big time." there was a round of laughter at that.

"So." Mal clapped her hands together, "Will the chosen children step forward please?" and she watched as they did, Celia dragging her sister forward, the Smee twins clinging to each others hands, Claudine with a confident air, and then there was Gil, who still looked disbelieving.

She gave a bright smile, "I've met a couple of you." she grinned at Celia, who gave a dramatic bow, a grin on her lips, and Gil shrunk in on himself slightly. "But most of you I haven't met-I can't say I'll be spending as much time with you as I would probably like, I graduated school so I won't be attending with you guys, but I will be visiting as often as I can and I'll be making sure you settle in well. Anything you need to be comfortable I will do everything in my power to provide it."

"I'm sure you will-" there was a figure pushing her way through the crowds-and she burst through, rushing at Mal.

It took Mal a moment to recognise the woman, her usually perfect short grey hair had grown out, grown ragged, and the pink dress suit she usually wore was ragged and dirty-Mal really hoped that she'd found other clothes during her time on the Isle or they were even dirtier than then looked. "Queen Mallory, saviour of the freaks and monsters who should be rotting! Tossing a woman who only tried to right your wrongs here! I don't belong here." she was rushing at Mal-and-holy crap the woman had a sword.

"Leah?" her voice was incredulous and Mal stumbled backwards, the guards surging forward-though Jay and Carlos were there first, shoving Mal at Evie, who dragged her backwards as they closed ranks in front of her.

"You're not touching her." Mal could hear Jay's voice as she was dragged towards the limo, and then another voice spoke up.

"I'd listen to the boy if I was you." and Mal was slipping from Evie's grip, twisting to see what was happening-and Hades had grabbed Leah, had literally slapped the sword from the mad womans hand. "We haven't met yet little Queenie. I'm Hades, y'know, the god. The Isle is mine these days and I won't tolerate people like you breaking the piece." he turned his gaze, eyes finding Mal and he gave her a small smirk, "I'll take care of this one. You should go your highness."

"Thank you." Mal's smile was genuine as she nodded her head at Hades respectfully. And with that she let Evie shove her into the limo, the new Isle kids sliding into the limo after her, followed by Jay and Carlos and the guards.

Once they were moving Mal sighed, "Well that didn't go as smoothly as I'd have liked."

"It was going really well until Leah showed up." Jay scowled, "She's just sore that you kicked her butt last time you fought."

"Yeah, I remember it." Mal shook her head, running her fingers through her hair. "Sorry guys." she looked at the other VK's, who looked slightly shaken.

"She's the one you came the the Isle to stop before right?" it was Celia who spoke up, looking hesitant, "And then Hadie and Dizzy helped you get Hades Ember and you have some kind of alliance now."

"Yes." Mal nodded, "Sorry you were left out of the loop Celia it was dangerous... It was bad enough involving them-"

"As Celia's big sister I'm not complaining." Freddie piped up, "You pissed off Uma's crew right-"

"Yeah." Gil piped up, "She was real mad after Hades showed up." he paused, "I'm sorry."

"Don't-" Mal held up a hand, "Water under the bridge, I hope you enjoy Auradon. Now." she took a deep breath, gesturing to the wide selection of candy in the middle of the limo, "I imagine you're all chomping at the bit to taste some Auradon sweets." she gestured to them, "From what I've been told Carlos and Jay nearly fought over them-"

"We did." the boys spoke in unison, grinning smugly.

"What can I say." Jay grinned, "The candy in Auradon is the best you're gonna love it." as he spoke he tossed the Smee twins chocolate bars, while Claudine, Gil, Celia and Freddie all grabbed some for themselves.

It was Claudine who spoke first after taking a bite of her chocolate, letting out a happy little noise.

"Oh my god this stuff is amazing." and immediately the limo was filled with the eager chatter of the Isle kids who were experiencing proper candy for the first time.

"Glad you guys like it." Mal smiled softly, "I... I know you guys didn't get nearly enough food-"

"It's gotten better lately." Freddie gave a small shrug, "You've been sending better stuff-"

"I've gotten rid of most of my opposition." Mal shrugged, "That or they've found their losing what support they had thanks to the fact that I've come down hard on those who've been meddling with the supply barges-"

"Pretty sure you made one of the councillors run out crying." Evie grinned, "Now that was a very fun day."

"It really was." Mal smiled at the memories, after the meeting Ben had ended up pushing her against a wall when they were alone and just kissing her until she was breathless, before telling her that his favourite sight to see was her 'kicking ass' as he'd put it. He'd told her he loved her too.

Since the first time the words had gotten easier and easier for him to say.

Now she'd do anything just to be able to talk to him without them arguing again. She'd give it a day or so-he wasn't likely to be happy today because of the Gil situation. She'd do anything to feel his arms around her and his lips on hers.

She forced away those thoughts quickly, focusing on the Isle Kids, watching and listening to them as they drove over the bridge-laughing at their awe when the magic formed the bridge, and their reactions to the beauty of Auradon made her beam with pride.

Honestly she regretted the fact that she hadn't insisted on being there to pick up her friends on their first journey to Auradon. She'd have loved to see their reactions, but of course she'd had a million and one things to do-as if that ever changed. She couldn't wait until Audrey finished school and could step up to help, as they'd always planned. She'd be Mal's closest advisor, take on some of the workload. And her plans had involved Ben too, since she'd been thinking of them being together in the future, but right now... well she wasn't sure what the situation between them was right now.  
She desperately wanted to fix it of course but she was terrified that it wasn't salvageable. She couldn't stand the thought of losing him for good.

She definitely needed to talk to him soon.

And she also needed to stop getting caught up in her thoughts because Freddie was trying to get her attention.

She summoned up a warm smile, turning her gaze to the brightly dressed girl, "Sorry Freddie I was just distracted a second. What was that?"

"I was just asking where we'll sleep and stuff."

"There are dorm rooms, two person a room." Mal explained, "Freddie you and Claudine will share-"

"That's cool." Claudine nodded, "I'm good with that,"

"Gil I don't know who you're assigned too. You two." she smiled at the Smee twins, "Will share a room, Celia you will share with Dizzy-"

"Yes." Celia grinned, "I get a room mate I know! Will I get to see Hadie again too?"

"Of course." Mal grinned, "You'll see them at the party in a few days time-"

"I'll provide outfits." Evie grinned, "If you want that is. I already have some sorted out already."

"She likes to be prepared." Mal grinned. And even if Ben was upset with her this moment, it was a good one.


	6. Reconciliation?

It had been surprisingly easy to get the new VK's settled into Auradon Prep in their rooms, Jay and Carlos were in charge of showing the boys to their rooms while Evie and Mal dealt with Claudine, Freddie and Celia, who all seemed delighted by their rooms-especially when Mal and Evie told them they could decorate however they liked as their room mate didn't have any issues with what they chose to do.

They were also introduced to Jennifer, who greeted them warmly, and there was definitely a more relaxed air about her than their had been the first time around.

And of course Audrey had been there too, giving the Isle kids an intensive tour, helping explain the rules to them and just generally helping make them as comfortable as possible before they headed home, Evie coming with them to pick up Dizzy.

And days passed, Audrey spending most of her time with Mal helping her with preparations for the party, Evie visited to help with her outfit-honestly every dress she wore these days seems to be an Evie design or one that Audrey had picked out for her.

Mal had planned on making time to see Ben before the day of the party, but things had got so hectic and she hadn't had the chance. Which was why she was currently perched on her bed staring at her phone, biting her lip hard.

She'd tried to call Ben but he hadn't answered.

She ran her fingers through her hair. She was in the middle of getting ready... she shouldn't go out right now there was still a lot to do but-" she bit her lip hard, scrolling through her phone and pulling up Evie's number and pressing on it.

It rung three times before a familiar voice answered. "Hey Mal, everything okay?"

"Yeah, yeah E." Mal bit her lip, "I uh.. I was just wondering if Ben's around I.. I tried to call earlier but-"

"Uh.." Evie's voice was hesitant, "Yeah he's not here right now Mal he went to stay at the dorms at school the day after the new Isle kids arrived."

"He.. he did?"

"He was worried, think he wanted to keep an eye on Gil." and at least Evie wasn't trying to lie about why Ben had done it.

"No one told me."

"We didn't think to." Evie admitted, "I thought Ben would at least send you a text to let you know what was up-"

"Yeah sure." Mal shook her head, "He's not even talking to me right now, sure he'd send a text..." she let out a breath, biting her lip, "Y'know what  
I'm gonna head to the school, I need to talk to him.

"I... Mal are you sure? You're supposed to be getting ready right?" Evie's voice was filled with concern, and usually Mal would take more time to reassure her but not right now.

"Yeah I'm sure Ben and I are gonna have a talk about all this. I can't keep going like this Evie."

"Of course." Mal could hear Evie's sigh. "I hope you guys can talk things out... he still loves you Mal. You should have seen him when we got back from picking up the Isle Kids. I swear he wanted to go and murder Leah, it took me and Carlos repeatedly telling him that you were okay while Jay held his arms to stop him from rushing off to the Isle."

"I... really?" Mal's voice was hesitant, almost hopeful, "He... he really does still love me?"

"Are you kidding me that boy would kill for you. You're gonna have a long talk and you'll sort everything out just fine I promise you." Evie's voice was so reassuring that Mal almost wanted to cry she really did.

She honestly wasn't sure how she'd cope with the idea of her and Ben being over. She'd be completely broken hearted she knew that much. She'd have to carry on regardless she knew but... well although there was no way of knowing for certain she was pretty sure that he was her True love.  
She pushed away those thoughts when Evie's voice came through the phone again, "Mal, Mal you went quiet are you okay? Oh god please tell me I haven't broken you."

That earned a soft laugh from Mal, and then a heavy sigh, "No, no you haven't broken me Evie I'm fine. Everything is totally fine I just..got a tiny bit caught up in my thoughts there, no big deal. Listen I'm gonna go. Like I said I wanna go and try to speak to Ben. I'll call you after okay?"

"Of course. Ooh before you go how's your dress-"

"Evie it's perfect as every single dress you've ever made is." Mal laughed softly as she looked down at the dress she was wearing. It came to just below her knees, it was purple but there was a layer of blueish purple lace over the top that worked perfectly. Especially since when she twirled the skirt spun out around her in a way that she'd always loved as a little girl.

"Perfect." Evie's voice was pleased, "Now you go get your man, I would say good luck but you don't need it, and I gotta go, Doug's just got here."

"You have fun with your boyfriend, I gotta go fix things with mine." Mal hung up, grabbing her bag and shoving her phone into it quickly before she tugged on a pair of shoes-while heels weren't the most practical of shoes she wasn't sure if she'd have time to rush off and change them after her talk with Ben so it was best to just be as prepared as possible.

She also, after a moment of hesitation, pulled on the jacket that Hades had given to her. If they were going to talk they might as well discus everything after all, and this time she wasn't going to let anything interrupt their conversation.

A quick glance in her mirror had her tying her hair up into a messy bun-she could fix it on the way back to Castle Beast if she needed to, and then she was rushing off outside and she climbed onto her bike.

She started it up, grinning slightly to herself as she took off, speeding her way down the drive way and onto the roads, following the familiar paths to the school.

It wasn't exactly a long journey-though it was longer than she'd have probably liked.

She felt incredibly nervous, anxious to speak to Ben. To fix things between them. She didn't want to waste time arguing, she didn't want to regret not going to him. If she waited too long who knew what could happen? No it was better to do it now, they could fix things she was sure of it.

And her confidence in that fact grew as she raced along the familiar roads to the school, at last arriving at and driving up the familiar paved driveway and around to the side where the bike parting was.

Once it was secure she took off almost at a run, eager to get inside, to get on with this. If she took too long the nerves would come flooding back and she needed all of her strength, all of her confidence for this conversation.

It wasn't a long walk into the building, she knew the way to Ben's room well enough after all, they'd alternated between the boys room, the girls room and her room often enough when they'd decided to have their movie nights.

So she followed the familiar path, climbing up the stairs two at a time and making her way towards Ben's room, which she knew was next door to Gil's, and then further down the hall was the Smee twins room.

She might check in on them after she talked with Ben, depending on how it went. After all. Then again they'd probably all be leaving soon so there was also the fact that she and Ben would probably end up being late to the party-but hey she was the Queen, she knew Evie and Audrey would come up with some passable excuse for her. And any excuse for her could be used for Ben since it wasn't exactly well known that they'd had an argument and weren't exactly fitting their usual perfect couple stereotype at this point in time.

When she reached the hall that had Ben's room Mal slowed down, taking a deep breath as she moved towards her boyfriends rooms door-only to freeze when it swung open and someone stepped out looking incredibly smug-except it wasn't Ben.

It took Mal a moment to realize who it was as her heart sunk. She hadn't really seen the other girl since the disaster of Family Day, but she still recognized her, the long straight dark hair, the pale skin and the red lips, she did look a lot like her mother.

And she was leaving Ben's room wearing his favorite green leather jacket. Mal felt like she was going to be sick.

"W-what the hell?" her voice was quiet, the shock of the situation making her freeze in her spot. She felt as if the ground was falling out from under her feet. Her eyes were filling with tears.

Samantha White, Samantha White wearing Ben's jacket leaving Ben's room looking incredibly smug.

Of course her shocked words drew the girls attention and she span around to look at Mal. "Oh." Samantha looked shocked for a second but she composed herself pretty quickly, her eyes flicking up and down, "I wasn't expecting to see you here."


	7. To break a heart

"I'm here to visit my boyfriend." Mal swallowed hard, forcing herself to stay calm, "I feel like I'm the one who should be asking why you're here."  
"Boyfriend?" Samantha raised an eyebrow, "And here I thought you guys broke up-seriously did you think no one would notice, he moved out of Castle Beast, he didn't come with you and the other Isle kids to get the new batch." she crossed her arms across her chest, her bag swinging where it was hung over her arm.

The words made Mal flinch slightly, "We're not broken up-"

"Really?" Samantha raised an eyebrow, "That wasn't what I was told." and her voice was amused, mocking, "He certainly didn't seem too hung up on you."

"No." Mal felt like she'd been struck. "You're lying."

"Am I?" Samantha tugged at the sleeve of the jacket, "That's funny I don't see how I would have gotten this if I was lying."

"You.. Ben wouldn't he doesn't like you-"

"Oh honey." Samantha laughed, "Let's face it you're not exactly special. The only things you have going for you are your status and your magic and you stole your title-"

"What?"

"Everyone with half a brain knows you never should have been Queen." Samantha smirked, "Ben is the one who should be ruling Auradon. He was born for it, unlike you." she snorted, "You stole his life, you stole his title and you really think he could really love you? Everything you have should have been his."

"Stop it." Mal shook her head, "I-I didn't-"

"You stole everything from him. It just took him a while to realise what you are you evil little thief." Mal stepped back as if she was slapped as Samantha stepped closer to her, "Face it. He's not yours anymore. He's a big boy he's allowed to choose who he spends time with." she leaned in closer as Mal stumbled slightly, hand flashing out and catching Mal's arm, steadying her with a tight grip... too tight. It was almost painful, though that was barely noticeable with the tightness in her chest. She could almost feel her heart breaking.

"Stop it." her voice cracked, "Please Samantha this isn't funny you're lying to me."

"Why would I?" Samantha snorted, "As revenge for you ruining my life? Oh please get over yourself. I don't care about you any more, I just want the situation to be nice and clear. He's not yours anymore and he never will be again. It's just something you'll have to get used to."

"I need to talk to him." Mal tried to move past her, but Samantha blocked her, shoving her backwards hard, sending her stumbling back into the wall.

"He's mine. Mine, do you understand you stupid little girl." Samantha sneered, "You're not gonna try and win him over with your magic or something."

"I don't believe a word you're saying that isn't like Ben you're ly-" Mal froze, her eyes focusing on Samantha's hand. On her thumb as a familiar red band.

And in that moment Mal felt her heart ripping in two. She wanted to throw up. Her head was spinning.

"Where did you get that?"

"Oh, this?" Samantha raised her hand to show of the ring. "Ben gave it to me."

"I-I gave him that ring." Mal's voice shook.

"Huh. Well he gave it to me." Samantha gave a small shrug, though she still looked extremely amused by the pain in Mal's voice.

"I gave him that at my Coronation that.. It was my dad's-"

"You mean his dad." Samantha smirked, "Technically speaking it should have been his anyway. And he gave it to me."

"You... he.." Ben hadn't taken it off since the day she'd given it to him, she knew that, and Samantha could hardly have ripped it off his finger. If there was ever any proof that Samantha was telling the truth it was that ring.

Mal felt the tears start to fall as her hand flew up to cover her mouth while she shook her head, shaking as she slid down the wall until she hit the floor, knees pulled up to her chest, and Samantha crouched in front of her, giving her a mock sympathetic look.

"Does that hurt?" Her voice was taunting, "Just look at you, our proud Queen, heartbroken. You really are pathetic you know that." and this was worse than the pirates, worse than anything Mal had ever felt before. This pain was unimaginable. She felt like she couldn't breath. "I wouldn't bother trying to talk to Ben." Samantha reached out, grabbing Mal's face, her fingers digging into the flesh of Mal's cheeks "It'll just be awkward, I wouldn't do that to him if I was you." then she was releasing Mal's cheek and walking away, clearly feeling like she'd won.

And she had hadn't she? Mal had never felt so broken in her life, and the tears came hard and fast as she sat there frozen for several minutes until the door next to Ben's opened and Gil stepped out into the hall and he paused when he saw Mal. "Are you okay?"

"I.." Mal swallowed hard, wiping her face quickly, "I'm fine." She forced herself to her feet, trying to stop the shaking, "I... I've got to go. You should get ready for the party later."

"Are you here to see Braeden if you are I can-"

"I..." Mal glanced towards Ben's door, swallowing hard before she shook her head, "No. No I'm not. I have to go anyways I just... I wanted to return something to him." she reached behind her head, unlatching the clasp of her necklace and moving towards Ben's room, draping it over the door handle."

"Oh. Okay-are you sure you're okay?"

"I am." Mal forced herself to stand straighter, taking a deep breath, "There's somewhere I need to go anyway. Uh... when you do see Ben can you tell him something?"

"What is it?"

"I know about him and Samantha. She... she told me." Mal couldn't look at the teen.

"Alright." Gil nodded slowly before stepping back into his room and closing the door, still looking confused.

Mal closed her eyes when she was alone again, taking a deep breath and silently counting to ten before she headed outside and around to the side of the building to her bike, where she leaned against the wall heavily, letting out a sob.

She couldn't face the party now, not like this. She was broken. Shattered. She wanted her parents, wanted to cry into her moms shoulder, to have her dad hold her close and comfort her while she sobbed. But neither of them were home, and she couldn't go to them.

She considered Audrey, but... that wasn't what she needed right now but there was one person she could go to she was sure of that.

So she climbed onto her bike, tears still streaming down her cheeks as she started it up, sobbing silently as she rode, retracing their rout from her birthday, using her magic once more to ride her bike across the water and into the Isle.

She ignored the calls, her phone kept going off but she put it on silent after the third call. She didn't want to talk to whoever it was, she couldn't she was too broken she wouldn't make any sense, and god forbid if it were Ben she didn't know how she'd react and she didn't want him to see how he'd broken her. Shattered her into a million tiny pieces.

This time she didn't even bother to cover it up, dumping it when she arrived, ignoring the one or two shocked looks she got from people who recognized her as she sprinted through the streets of the Isle to Dragon Hall, she'd visited enough times that she could get there blindfolded by now-which was useful given the fact that her vision was blurry from her tears.

She rushed through the familiar empty classrooms and halls down to the basement, moving the rugs with great heaves and scrambling into the pitch black of the tunnel, where she let herself truly sob, she'd forced herself to cry silently up until this point-she didn't want people to hear, to realize just how much she was breaking inside. But here it didn't matter because there was only one person who would hear her as she stumbled and scrambled through the familiar passage, and clearly the echoing effect of the tunnel meant that he'd heard her long before she'd reached the end because Hades was already on his feet moving towards the tunnel when she tumbled out of it, landing in a crumbled wreck on the floor, tears flowing fast and her sobs loud, her whole body shaking with the force of them.

She felt heard the thud of Hades dropping to his knees next to her, felt his hands grabbing her face gently and tilting it up so that their eyes met, his hand cupping her cheek and his finger brushing away the tears, not that it did much good since she was still sobbing loudly.

"Mali, Mali what's wrong what happened?" his voice was near frantic as his other hand gripped her arm to keep her from toppling forward. "Are you hurt? Mali what happened to you?"

"He-" Mal shook her head, pressing her face into Hades shoulder, "He... he gave her the ring I gave him."

"Him? The ring?" Hades eyes narrowed. "Ben? Are you talking about Ben?"

"I-he..."

"Hey, hey hey..." Hades clearly struggled for a second to force down his anger, but he managed to, hand on her cheek moving to her hair and gently combing through it as he pulled her into a comforting hug, "It's okay Mali, it's okay. You're with me, you're gonna be okay." as he spoke he was picking her up and carrying her across the cavern to his bed and setting her down, gently wrapping a blanket around her shoulders, "It's gonna be okay." he rubbed her back soothingly as she kept sobbing until the tears ran out and exhaustion took hold of her, and the last thing she saw was her papa's gentle expression as he pressed his lips to the top of her head and she fell asleep.


	8. Voicemail

When Mal woke up she was practically buried under a pile of blankets and she let out a sleepy groan as she lifted her head, then she let her head flop back when the memories of what happened came rushing back. "Papa?"

"I'm here." the voice was from beside her and Mal turned her head to see Hades, who had clearly been sat on the floor next to the bed keeping an eye on her.

Despite how heartbroken she was that felt... nice actually. Her papa loved her. It was comforting and she let out a shaky breath. "Thank you. For... being there."

"Where else was I gonna be? Kinda trapped here." Hades shot her a teasing smile, and Mal laughed softly.

"You know what I meant-"

"Yeah Mali I know." Hades frowned, "Now do I need to murder your little boyfriend."

"Ex boyfriend." Mal's voice was quiet, "That was made very clear by his new girl today-"

"So killing him it is-if you let me off the Isle."

"No-no." Mal shook her head, smiling weakly. "I don't want you to hurt him even if... even if I am kinda heartbroken."

"He's not worth it." Hades snorted "You're the best that brat could ever dream of having Mali. Never forget that. If he was dumb enough to leave you  
then he deserves nothing. You'll find someone better."

"I love him." Mal admitted quietly, "I thought he was the one, y'know?"

"If he can hurt you like this then he doesn't even nearly deserve you."

"I love you papa." Mal sighed, "You... I needed this. You."

"You were a mess when you got here." Hades scowled, "Ben'll be lucky if I ever see him and don't kill him."

"Papa no." Mal shifted, sitting up in the bed and giving him a serious look, "I don't want you to hurt him. I still love him. That... I love him enough to let him go if he wants to go." she tucked a curl behind her ear, frowning softly.

Something felt different, slightly off, though she couldn't put any words to it. "What time is it anyway papa?"

"Seven." Hades shook his head, "I know your party's supposed to start at seven but you were a mess Mali, I wasn't gonna wake you up and send you to a party when you were so worked up."

"It's okay papa. People will complain but right now that's the last thing I care about." she sighed heavily, "I wonder if I'll get any signal down here... I know the Isle doesn't exactly have cell service but-"

"You will, not good signal but passable." Hades looked somewhat guilty, "I tried to get deep enough to get through, there's little cracks that let in some cell phone signal. Never could get deep enough that I could access my magic."

"Right." Mal sighed, grabbing her bag from where Hades had placed it next to the bed and opening it up, raising an eyebrow slightly when she saw the number of missed calls. Twenty.

Five from Ben, seven from an unknown number, three from Evie, two from Jay and Carlos each and one from Audrey, and there were multiple voicemails too.

"Wow." she breathed out, "Just wow. I... Now I am actually concerned why the hell did they try and call me so much?"

"Did they leave messages?"

"Yeah, yeah there are a few." Mal frowned worriedly as she quickly dialed the number to call up her voicemails, holding her phone to her ear, brows furrowing when she was told there were six.

Then the first one started-surprisingly it wasn't from Ben but from the unknown number.

"Mal, Mal why the hell aren't you picking up I've tried to call you like, a dozen times and you're not answering. Gil said you were upset about something... what's going on what the hell was he talking about Samantha? There's no big secret I don't understand why you're so upset. I didn't even know you were coming here today. Please just answer the phone I'm worried about you."

Then there was the next one.

"Mal, Mal why the-why is the necklace I gave you hanging on my door handle what the-Mal I swear I don't know what I've done wrong I know we fought and honestly I think you were probably right I'm sorry... if this is what that's about then please don't keep ignoring me please just answer your freaking phone because I am scared right now okay legitimately scared I can't lose you I love you." and Mal could feel the confusion rushing over her.

"W-what-" but then the next voice mail was starting and it's Evie's voice this time.

"Mal, Mal Ben told us something went wrong when you went to see him, did Samantha show up or something did she say something to you? Gil said you knew about Samantha but I promise you Ben's had nothing to do with Samantha. He hates her you know that we all do after what she did to me on Family day. I'm gonna call Audrey okay I wanna know that you're okay so please just let us know were you are? I know everyone's on their way to Castle Beast I really hope you're there. God just... call us back please Mal whatever happened... call us back."

"Something's not right." Mal frowned, catching Hades' eye, "Something doesn't make sense. They... why would he pretend innocent like this I caught her leaving his room with his jacket and ring."

"Put it on speaker." Hades leaned closer, moving so that he was sat in the bed next to Mal as she clicked on the speaker phone button and pulled the phone away from her ear.

"Mal." it was Audrey's voice this time, filled with worry, "Mal, Mal please please you never ignore my calls, never, not unless you literally can't pick up so what's wrong why the hell aren't you answering your phone this... it's not funny Evie called me sounding worried as hell and she said you went to see Ben but something happened and you ended up not seeing him? She said something upset you-I swear to god if he's done something bad I will kill him Mal if he's upset you more than you already were I will take my heel and use it to poke his eyes out. God Mal please just call back...-"

"Mal!" that was Hadie's voice, "Mal please please be okay I don't wanna lose my big sister where are you? Come home please everyone's freaking out-"

"She'll be okay Hadie she always is." Audrey's voice was soothing, and Mal could see the pain in Hades' eyes hearing his youngest child sounding so scared, "Just... for god sake please call someone okay? Literally any of us."

"Her I like." Hades spoke when the beep sounded showing that it was the end of the message. "Much more than I like Ben." his arm wrapped around Mal's shoulder, squeezing gently.

"Mal." the next message was different instantly. Ben's voice was beyond the worry that there had been before, now there was anger in it too. "I just went into my room and someone's been in there it was Samantha wasn't it? I know she's taken my jacket and my ring-I took it off because I didn't... I didn't feel like I deserved to have it. God Mal whatever she told you was a lie I swear. Whatever she said was a lie. Please you have to believe me-" and Mal felt as if her breath had been stolen. Should she get her hopes up? It would be even worse if she got her hopes up only to lose him again. "I never... god Mal I swear I get why you'd believe it I haven't exactly been there for you lately and if she had the ring... but please give me a chance to prove that I didn't betray you I can't handle the thought of losing you once more. I'll... I really hope you're at home I really really do because I'm about to head there to find you. I swear if you make me search for you I will... I'll find you I swear no matter what okay I just... I know I said it before but I love you. Like, really, truly, seriously love you."

"Do you think he's telling the truth?" Hades raised an eyebrow, "I'd have to trust your judgement on this matter."

"I.. I really want to believe him... and Samantha does hate me... and.. and he's always hated her for what she did on Family day."

"Then you should go back and talk to him."

"There's one more message." Mal pointed out, as the message started, and it was Ben's voice again. And suddenly the voice was beyond terror it was frantic. "Mal, Mal she took my mom." his voice almost shook, "She's gone, I checked her vivarium and she's gone Samantha took her. I... everyone knows that it's my mom why would she steal... Mal you need to get home like now." and Mal felt her heart sinking.

What would Samantha want with Maleficent."

"Mal if she finds a way to restore her... if she comes back... I.. you need to be here, Auradon needs you okay. The Kingdom needs you I think we're in trouble, like, really big trouble." then there was the click of Ben hanging up and Mal looked at Hades, who frowned.

"Mal. Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't Ben the one Maleficent adopted to replace you so that she could still have a minion?"

"Yes." Mal nodded, her face pale. "Yes. That would be right. She was turned into a lizard during my coronation just under a year ago."

"So this girl who hates you has Maleficent?"

"I... Samantha doesn't have magic... but if she somehow manages to find a spell or something..." she shook her head, face pale, "If she restores Maleficent to her normal form... I need to get back to Auradon. Like, now."

"Right." Hades nodded, "Let's get you out-" and then the ground was shaking around them and Hades was shoving them both to the ground, curling himself around her protectively as he pressed them both close to the wall, shielding her from chunks of rock that fell around them.


End file.
